PLN/PLC

"If a teacher is not connected, it is by choice not by circumstance."

This quote struck me as being a perceptive examination of todays educators. Seriously, with so much access to resources through online platforms there is little excuse for not being connected professionally. 

Viki Davis contributed a journal article to Edutopia to discuss what a Professional Learning Network/Community is and its value in education.

Torrey Trust defines the PLN (PDF) as "a system of interpersonal connections and resources that support informal learning." The PLN is a cornerstone of modern connectivist theories of learning as advocated by George Siemens and Stephen Downes.

Some of my favorite PLN's are Google+ Communities like: Connected Classrooms, and Instructional Technology Integrators and Coaches. In addition to those, I have found tremendous value in Twitter and twitter chats. My handle is @erod129 (please follow and I will be glad to follow back), and I take part in chats like: #personalizedPD, #edtechchat, #haysedchat. Through these chats, not only do I gain valuable insights through experts and specialist in the field, I make connections that I can rely on for ideas and advise. Here is a directory that lists chats and when they are scheduled.

I think the last way that I try to stay connected is by using an app called feedly. This is a way for me to curate journals and articles that are of interest to me. You can bet that Edutopia is at the top of my list of RSS feeds. Using Feedly I do not miss any post from my favorite online journals. When you find a great online journal, you can search for it in feedly and add it to your list. Feedly will keep track of new posts and add them automatically. There is an option to share your feeds with others, but it is an option when you upgrade from the free version.

I would love to know how you stay connected. Please feel free to share your experience and ideas on how to grow your PLN/C

Hays CISD Digital Learning Team

I would like to give a shout out to my director, Jamie Locklin for his skill in forming and maintaining a cohesive and supportive Digital Learning Team. If you are interested in great ideas and ways to integrate technology into your school/classroom, he is the Jedi Master, which, I guess would make me his Padawan (I'm good with that). I am honored to be given the opportunity to learn and to help my district become more tech integrated.

When I applied for this position I was sure that there would be many more other highly qualified people that would be considered. I was shocked when I was contacted for an interview, and then truly humbled when I was offered the position. Jamie told me that the committee was looking for a veteran teacher that had strong background in pedagogy and content; someone that was familiar with technology but eager to learn more and easily trainable. Also, someone that people could easily relate to others, and someone that was personable. I was very honored that I fit those descriptions.

It was not an easy decision to give up 13 years in the classroom, leave comfort of familiarity, and begin in a new direction. Jamie made it easy. He is one of the most patient, and supportive supervisors I have ever worked with.

One of my favorite aspects to the work environment that I am in is the collaborative aspect that we have. When we meet, we bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table. I am unceasingly impressed with the quality of interactions that we have. We learn from each other, and we are able to create products that help to support the learning of our teachers and students. I can witness the difference that we make to teachers and I know that translates into student success.

So, if you are an administrator, and you are hoping to build a team, please make sure that you consider the personalities of those you seek to hire. You may have the most skilled person in front of you, but if they can not take a joke then you have undermined your teams cohesiveness and therefore their productivity.

I can not over emphasize the importance of a teams interdependence and cohesiveness. This was never more evident to me when we planned PD for all administration in our district. Our Superintendent and all principals were in attendance. As a team we joined together to support the learning of all those in the room. Not one of us were experts in everything presented, but together there were at least one or two that could address any question about the technology that was being used that day. I am proud to be part of the team, not only because it went very well, and we received lots of positive feedback, but because I knew that I was not alone. I knew that I could rely on my team mates and my director to support me if a question or problem arose that I was not able to address.

I am excited to see our team grow and experience more success as we support the needs of teachers and students in Hays CISD. 

Digital Badges

My team is interested in creating and implementing digital badging under the guise of gamification. A team mate sent out a request for information to the Google+ community:  Instructional Technology Integrators & Coaches. I would like to thank him and the people that responded to the post. We have been able to compile a list of resources and considerations based in large part to this thread. Here is a link to the discussion thread, which is still growing. I am excited to delve into this and begin creating our own system of digital badges.

Here is what I have been able to discern what might suit our needs and options that might work for us:

1) We can create our badges in Google Draw. This is a simple and easy process, very user friendly.
2) We want the badging system to be visible and readily accessible so we might create badges that can be displayed outside each teachers classroom.
3) We are going to find out if the badges we create can be managed in our Learning Management System (LMS)
4) We need to decide how these badges are going to be issued, and if we can issue and kind of transferrable PD credit.

We were also referred to a Google+ Badging Community that has a great amount of resources for those seeking more information and resources.

I think we have a great start, and I look forward to how this might provide recognition for teachers that go above and beyond, and hopefully instill a little internal motivation for those who might be on the fence about trying something new.

TED Talks

A friend of mine told me a story about the response to a question asked during an interview. He asked the interviewees, "What is your favorite TED talk? Some knew what he was referring to others said that they really enjoyed Ted, and all of what he spoke about. If you do not know about TED talks and podcasts, don't be embarrassed. I had no idea a couple of years ago, but now that I do, I am hooked and love the thought provoking talks that I listen to from insightful minds!

TED, stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful, talks in about 18 minutes or less. TED began in 1984 and as a conference where Technology, Entertainment, and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics- from science to business to global issues - in more than 100 languages. I have listened to many talks. The one characteristic that I enjoy about TED talks is the level of thought provocation. The talks focus on topics that are engaging and the speakers are authorities in their fields. I highly recommend TED talks if you are interested in listening to some of the most cutting edge perspectives on global issues.

For me, the educational talks are of most interest. Here is a link to the educational talks that are listed on the page.

By the way, in my interview, I mentioned that my favorite TED talk was from Sir Ken Robinson, "Do Schools Kill Creativity?"

I hope you enjoy and I hope you learn something that will make you think about something more deeply.